A coffee van owner in Perth's north is training up one of his newest recruits to make the perfect brew for nearby residents and they are quickly becoming a popular local duo.
Dave Magri, 55, befriended Andy Cooper after noticing him watching coffees being made from his Eglinton van each Wednesday with his carer.
Despite having a basic level barista certificate and a passion to make coffee, Mr Cooper, who has Down syndrome, struggled to find a business to take him on.
But Mr Magri saw a budding barista, and invited Mr Cooper to get behind the counter with him.
'Highlight of my week'
Mr Magri has trained the 37-year-old every Wednesday for the past few months, teaching him all things coffee but also offering some important life lessons.
"He does the whole thing – making coffees and taking orders from customers, taking payments, talking to them," he said.
Dave Magri says working with Andy Cooper is the highlight of his week. (ABC News: Courtney Withers)
The pair train for an hour each week, but already Mr Magri has noticed a big change in both Mr Cooper and himself.
"When Andy comes on a Wednesday, for me, I feel like I'm just helping him and it makes me feel better … it's the highlight of my week," he said.
"Him being around me gives me a bit of happiness because I enjoy teaching him and having him around."
Mr Magri said he will continue building Mr Cooper's skills and plans to employ him when he's ready, but he wants more businesses to follow his lead and provide "more opportunities".
Mr Cooper said Mr Magri is "like a teacher" to him and he has loved the experience of making coffees.
This local duo making coffees in Perth’s north want other businesses to follow their lead.
"It was so good to make the coffees for good people and so nice to come and go sometimes … and make more people be happier," Mr Cooper said.
Improving employment opportunities
The state government is hoping to connect more businesses like Mr Magri's and people with disability seeking employment through a new pilot program.
Disability Services Minister Don Punch said the 12-month program, Ability Link, will make businesses feel more confident in employing people with disability by clearing barriers and providing specialised support.
Don Punch says the new scheme will help to get people with disabilities into employment. (ABC News: Keane Bourke)
"Every single business in Western Australia has the opportunity to change the life of a person living with disability," Mr Punch said.
"It's about understanding what a person's aspirations are, what their abilities are, what the contribution they can make and being open to making the changes in the businesses."
Mr Punch said The Chamber of Commerce and Industry WA (CCIWA) will link small to medium-sized businesses across the sector with support services and make resources available to assist with the hiring process.
"It will work with businesses that are motivated to really explore it and we want those businesses to act as mentors for other businesses," he said.
"[Then] we can get that sort of sequencing effect and, for people with disability, understanding that the thinking might be changing and that they've got CCIWA behind them."
Time for meaningful change
Service providers at Perth's Disability Connection Expo in mid-August also offered solutions to increasing employment outcomes.
BIZLINK Quality Employment, a disability employment service, was inundated with interest.
"We do a thing called job exploration to start with that looks at what skills the person already has and then looks to convert those skills into a workplace job," BIZLINK's Beth Boorer said.
Beth Boorer says her organisation has been inundated with interest. (ABC News: Courtney Withers)
"And the more people with disabilities in the workplace, the better the awareness is."
People With Disabilities WA CEO Brendan Cullinan said while he's completely supportive of the government's pilot program, there's always more room for change.
"There really needs to be, in mainstream employment, a change in focus and change in the dial to improve opportunities for people with disability," he said.
People with Disabilities WA CEO Brendan Cullinan says more needs to be done to get people with disabilities into work. (ABC News: Courtney Withers)
"There needs to be that genuine commitment and champions in government and the business sector to bring about some meaningful change."
Back in Eglinton, Mr Magri will continue to build up Mr Cooper's skills to get him ready for employment.
He's also been approached by other carers to take on more budding baristas and plans to develop a project for people with disability in the community who are keen to get behind the counter too.
"Andy's starting to be known in the community and that's the whole thing about community – meeting people and making them feel better," Mr Magri said.